The woman and girl were from Leyland, Lancashire, according to Cumbria police, who said the boat was at a jetty on a popular tourist destination. Photograph: George Herringshaw/Headline photo agency

A 36-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl have died from a suspected case of carbon monoxide poisoning on a boat at Windermere in the Lake District.

Emergency services were called to a jetty on the eastern shore at around 4pm on Monday following reports that a number of people on a private boat were suffering from serious breathing difficulties. The woman and child went into cardiac arrest and were treated at the scene before being airlifted to the Royal Lancaster Infirmary, where they later died.

A man who was also on the boat was taken to hospital suffering from suspected smoke inhalation and was still receiving treatment on Monday night.

The woman and girl were from Leyland, Lancashire, according to Cumbria police, who said the boat was at a jetty on Glebe Road, Bowness, a popular tourist destination.

Duncan Bannatyne, the businessman and Dragons' Den star, was in the area at the time and posted a picture on Twitter, saying: "Tragic accident over there I am afraid."

A spokeswoman for Cumbria police said: "Police are currently investigating the circumstances of this tragic incident and trying to establish the full facts about what has happened. The coroner has been informed."

Police were unable to confirm reports that the deaths were the result of carbon monoxide.

Around 50 people in the UK die each year in their homes due to carbon monoxide poisoning, which is created when fossil fuels such as gas and solid fuels such as charcoal and wood fail to combust fully due to a lack of oxygen. Tragedies have also taken place at campsites where barbeques have been taken inside tents and enclosed spaces.